


nothing at stake (except for, well, you)

by perihelion (mattratat)



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Canon Compliant, M/M, but there's definitely remind foreshadowing, no remind spoilers, set sometime during kh3, short and (bitter)sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-09
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:15:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23073823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mattratat/pseuds/perihelion
Summary: On a quiet night, Sora and Riku watch a sunset and make a promise.
Relationships: Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 78





	nothing at stake (except for, well, you)

Sora rested his head on Riku’s shoulder, sighing. “It’s so quiet.” 

“Peaceful,” Riku corrected him, his arm wrapping around Sora’s shoulders on reflex. He held him close. The feeling of Sora’s weight against his side was comforting, a feeling as close to home as any. 

“I don’t know if I’m really cut out for peace anymore,” Sora said, his voice so uncharacteristically quiet that Riku could barely hear him. 

Riku tried to keep the surprise from his face, but it was hard. Thankfully, he didn’t think Sora was looking at him; instead he was facing towards the sunset. The dying rays of sun lit up his face so beautifully, a sight that should have made Riku’s heart soar. Instead, all he could think about was how small and sad Sora looked. 

Riku squeezed his shoulders, hoping he could find some comfort in the embrace. “What do you mean?” 

“I mean… I don’t know,” Sora sighed again, a terrible sound. “I don’t remember what it’s like to not feel on edge, constantly. Is that bad?” 

“I don’t know,” Riku repeated, because it was the truth. He didn’t think that it was a good thing, but both his and Sora’s apprehension had saved them more than a handful of times. Was that normal, though? In a way, it didn’t seem very fair at all that they never seemed to relax. This was the first time they’d gotten to spend time together in over a week and still Riku was one bad twitch away from summoning his keyblade. “But I get you.” 

“It sucks,” Sora groaned. 

Riku wished he could unwind, too. That he could sit and watch the sunset with his boyfriend without fear, without looking for shadows in the corner of his eye. 

“It does,” Riku agreed, because there wasn’t anything else he could say. “We’ll be okay, though.” 

“How can you be so sure?” Sora asked. 

Riku’s heart twisted for him. His heart ached for Sora’s happiness, a wish more desperate than any that had come before it. But he didn’t know how to calm Sora down, or how to make the jitterious go away. He could handle the nightmares, but he didn’t know how to help Sora during the daytime. His burden seemed so impossibly heavy, it was all Riku could do to share it sometimes. Sometimes he thought their backs would break from the effort. 

The weight of a thousand worlds was heavy on their shoulders, after all. 

Sometimes, he wished Sora could have stayed on the Islands. That he could have avoided this whole mess altogether. That Sora could be safe, that Riku wasn’t constantly worried that something had happened to him if he didn’t pick up his Gummiphone right away. 

But, truthfully… Riku was glad he was here. He was glad that Sora had his back, just like Riku had his. That he wasn’t alone, that Sora was always there when he needed him, or even when he just missed him. It was terribly selfish, accepting that Sora had given up his safety to chase him down this path, but Riku couldn’t imagine it any other way. He didn’t know what he’d do without Sora, after all. He didn’t want to live this life, or any life, without him. 

Maybe it was selfish, but Riku had never seen himself as much of a martyr anyways. 

He let his head fall on top of Sora’s, closing his eyes for just a moment- not too long, because there was no telling what would appear before them while they rested. 

But when he opened them, it was still just the sunset, and Sora’s hand resting on one of his outstretched legs. 

The sun sunk lower in the sky. It was warm, and Sora smelled like the ocean. Pinks and oranges gleamed over the horizon. 

He thought he could learn to live with peace, if it was anything like this. 

“Because I have you,” Riku finally answered. “And that’s all I need to be okay.”

Sora groaned again, louder this time, but Riku could hear the smile in it this time. “You’re such a cheesy bastard sometimes.” 

Riku laughed, feeling some of the weight lift off his chest and go with it. “Maybe.” 

“Maybe my ass,” Sora snorted. 

“Besides,” Riku continued, choosing to ignore Sora’s comment. “We’ve gone through plenty worse things than peace and made it out alive. I think peace might be a cakewalk.” 

“You really think so?” he asked. He didn’t sound too convinced. 

“What’s gotten into you?” Riku asked. “You’re not usually so pessimistic.” 

Sora shrugged as well as he could pressed against Riku’s side. “Yeah, I know. It’s silly, it just… We’re so close, but I can’t shake the feeling that this isn’t over yet. Even if we defeat Xehanort. It sounds too good to be true.” 

Riku hummed. In truth, he’d been kept awake at night by similar fears, but he told himself that that was all they were: fears. They would defeat Xehanort and bring peace to the worlds. They would. They had to. 

“Is that crazy?” Sora asked. “I’m not crazy.” 

“I didn’t say you were,” Riku pointed out. 

Sora pulled himself out of Riku’s hold, turning his head so that Riku could turn to look at him. “We’ll always be together, right? Even after we defeat Xehanort.” 

Riku blinked at him. “Of course.” 

It was never a question to him, after all. 

“Promise me,” Sora insisted. 

He looked so serious that it threw Riku off a little. He had seen Sora determined, he had seen him sad, but rarely had he seen him so serious. 

  
“No matter what happens, we’ll be together. We’ll be okay,” He assured Sora. “I promise.” 

“Pinky promise?” Sora asked, holding out his hand. 

Riku hooked his pinky with his, smiling. “Pinky promise.” 

Sora beamed at him. “Thanks, Riku.” 

“You’re welcome, you goof,” Riku teased, unlinking their pinkies so he could properly hold Sora’s hand. 

Sora brought Riku’s hand to his lips, pressing a quick kiss to his fingers. “I love you.” 

“I love you, too, Sora.” 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!!!!
> 
> hmu on twitter, @vanitashours 
> 
> have a great day!!


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